The Liberty Half Eagle
holds the distinction of being the only coin of any type or denomination to be struck at
all seven mints. They were struck in two types--the ultra-scarce "No Motto,"
minted from 1839 until 1865 and the "With Motto" (IN GOD WE TRUST) type, struck
from 1866 until 1908.

Like many other U.S.
coins, the Liberty Half Eagle depicts the crowned image of Liberty on the obverse and, on
the reverse, a majestic bald eagle with a shield over its breast, perched on an olive
branch and holding three arrows.

During the Civil War,
widespread gold hoarding led the U.S. government to significantly reduce the mintages of
these coins, making issues from that era particularly rare.

The $20 gold coin shown here is the only known specimen of
its kind and is among the rarest of United States coins. It owes its existence,in part, to
the discovery of gold in California in 1848, of which the famous Sutter's Mill discovery
was but the beginning. The California Gold Rush created a steady flow of gold, part of
which reached the United States Mint in Philadelphia. Instead of striking gold in
traditional $1 pieces,the Mint decided to also issue larger denominations. In February
1849,Congress authorized the striking of $20 gold coins, which were created by the very
talented Chief-Engraver James Barton Longacre. This coin is one of two trial patterns
struck on March 12, 1850, even though it bears the date 1849. The second pattern has never
been found. This coin inaugurated the series of gold 20 dollars, nicknamed "double
eagles", which were issued from 1850 to 1907. The term "double eagle" is
derived from the fact that the $10 coin is called an "eagle".

$10 Liberty Gold Coins Minted from 1838-1907

Austin Collectors Society just acquired a nice
collection of $10 Liberty gold coins. These classic U.S. gold coins offer collectors an
historic design, nearly a half ounce of gold, and an extremely affordable price per coin.

Each coin is hand-picked for great eye appeal with dates in the late 1800's. The $10
Liberty front displays the "Coronet" design introduced in 1838. The bust of Miss
Liberty appears with a crown surrounded by 13 stars for the 13 colonies.

The reverse (not shown) is a majestic heraldic eagle in the early Americana style. The
eagle is clutching an olive branch of peace in one talon and the arrows of war in the
other. By law, each $10 Liberty contains .48375 troy ounces of pure gold for your safety
and security.http://acoins.com/10libertygold.html

Pre-Civil
War Branch MintsThe United States branch mints at
Dahlonega and Charlotte opened in 1838. Their mission was to produce gold coinage
for circulation in the South from gold found in nearby Georgia, North Carolina, and
Alabama.

The Dahlonega Mint in Georgia
struck coins from 1838 to 1861 which bear the "D" Mint Mark for Dahlonega.

Over the span of 24 years, the Dahlonega Mint struck gold dollars, quarter
eagles, and half eagles.

This Pre-Civil War Mint had extremely low mintages of gold coins and today all
surviving coins from the Dahlonega Mint are considered rare.

Charlotte MintDuring the same era before
the Civil War, the Charlotte, North Carolina Mint opened and also struck U.S. gold
coins. All coins struck at Charlotte bear the "C" Mint Mark and are today
considered rare.

Collector ApproachToday, rare gold coins minted
before the Civil War are highly collectible for fascinating history and extreme
numismatic rarity. To collect Pre-Civil War coinage you need the help of Rare Coin
Specialists who are experienced experts in this area. One of the firms is Austin
Rare Coins which has
available several books to assist you on the history of Pre-Civil War coins.

Contact
info@rarecoins.org with comments or questions about this site. The Rare Coin Museum is a
division of Accent Rare Coins, Inc. and is provided as a public service to rare coin
collectors. All requests for coin collecting information will be fulfilled by the
respective firms offering free materials.
Copyright 2001. All rights reserved.
Site Updated July 23, 2001